Parallel Memory

"ACE ACADEMY!!!"

"CONGRATULATION!"

"I knew that you would be the winners!"

The instant Ace Academy students were teleported to the stadium, loud cheers entered their ears. Everyone in the audience was congratulating them like they had already won the tournament.

-FSSSHH!

"ZERO! You were incredible!"

"The new strongest student!"

"Rank Crusher!"

And obviously, when the one who showed incredible power came through, the cheers instantly shifted towards him. Everyone has seen him take out Rank-B students, defeat countless others and scare away thousands of monsters.

Everyone was excited about him. Even if they are not necessarily his friends or relatives, people were happy to have such a talented boy.

The world was not a peaceful place with signs of war showing and monsters becoming more and more of a problem. Having talented people was always welcomed, though not all of them were happy about it.

Ace Academy students stood there like champions who had already won the tournament. While the outcome is yet to be seen, many believe it to be inevitable.

They had strong students like Zero Elea, Hiro Ernest, and Lisanna Lockser. The chances of losing were very slim.

In contrast to when they had entered this tournament with fear of losing to Omar Noel, they were completely different after this round.

Omar Noel? He is already beaten by Hiro Ernest. Trump Cards? We have a monster called Zero with us.

They felt the crown of the best academy still belonged to them.

After Zero came out of the portal, the other Ace Academy students followed him. Zero was already their leader. With being the strongest comes the responsibility of the leader.

Zero didn't feel anything even when thousands of people were chanting his name and cheering for him. He was already immune to these things which change at the drop of a hat.

They might support him now, but if someone spreads negative news later, they immediately believe it and curse at him. Therefore, he didn't care about something like fame which was useless.

He walked to the Ace Academy side of the stadium where Professor Mia and other professors of Ace Academy were waiting for them.

"Congratulations to you all for advancing to the next round!"

"Zero, you really saved our school's dignity!"

"I bet we are the ones who have the most students that are qualified to enter the next round."

"Haha… We didn't know we had so many strong first-year students in our school! We have a bright future ahead of us."

The professors congratulate us the moment we arrive there. They were excited and proud of their students. The professors were also puffing their chests out to show that they were the ones who taught them.

"Excellent job! You all have done well, especially you Zero."

Professor Mia said.

She was satisfied with the performance of the participants and felt that they had done particularly well when facing strong enemies.

She was, of course, happier about Zero's progress and what he has done in the tournament. She knew that no one in this tournament could pose a threat to Zero but she didn't expect that Zero could defeat a Rank-B and also defeat so many strong opponents in an instant.

It was only a few days that she didn't teach Zero due to the work regarding the tournament and she felt that his power had already increased drastically.

"You can either wait here or go rest in your hotel!"

The tournament still has some time left. Currently, we are the only group that has shown up. Others were still fighting and collecting tokens.

Injured and exhausted students were accompanied by some professors to the restroom. They immediately called for high-ranking healers.

Zero decided to sit and watch the ongoing tournament. He was not too tired and wanted to see if the participants would show something interesting. He might even see some of their trump cards which might come in handy in upcoming rounds.

The big screen showed various battles, including one that included a video of Omar Noel and the other two. Currently, they seem to be heading towards the portal.

Well, with their strength, it is not surprising that they were able to collect the tokens.

"What do you think about that girl?"

Professor Mia asked as she sat down near me.

The girl she was referring to was the Rank-B girl that I fought.

"She is powerful but it was easy dealing with her."

Zero said.

"Not that! Do you have any idea who she is? Like when you fought her, you felt that she was someone you were familiar with."

Professor Mia asked.

No matter what she tried, she was unable to obtain information about that girl, whose identity remained a secret. While she was not Zero's opponent, it was wise to be vigilant, especially against someone who is Rank-B.

With someone of her talent, it was weird how nobody knew about her. She even wondered whether she was a student or not. Though those doubts were dispelled knowing that one cannot enter the tournament without a student ID.

"I don't know! She was probably using some artifact to conceal her face. I could not see her face even when I got extremely close to her."

Zero answered.

"I see! She reminds me of someone, especially in her Art. I think I saw it somewhere before!"

Professor said while contemplating something.

She thought that The Authority should know about this girl since she was so strong. She needed to ask someone she knows there after the tournament.

"How did Arcane Academy hide someone like her?"

Professor Mia said while looking over at the Arcane Academy.

At the Arcane Academy side, the professors all wore an ugly faces. All their plans were revealed and none of them succeeded. Most of their students also lacked the tokens to advance to the next round.

Luckily, three of the strongest students of their Academy were able to collect the tokens. However, it was their fault that Arcane Academy was in this situation. Those three were obligated to take responsibility for their failure.

Demacia Academy and Skyline Academy were in similar states. While their students managed to collect some tokens, it was only enough for 4 to 5 students. They knew that they were going to be at a disadvantage in the next round.

More so when they know that Ace Academy has a monster known as 'Zero'.